Florida schools can now fingerprint volunteers under a new law aimed at enhancing security. The law, effective immediately, mandates background checks for volunteers in schools who have direct contact with students. While some schools have already begun implementing…
Posts by Category: Florida
Former Employees Hit Naples Hotel Group with FCRA Class Action Over Background Checks
A putative Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) class action, filed Feb. 13 in the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court in Orange County, Fla., has been removed by Naples Hotel Group LLC. The lawsuit alleges that Naples “improperly obtained and used consumer reports about…
Jury Awards Nearly $70.6 Million in Yacht Rape Case
A stewardess on board the Endless Summer yacht, docked at Universal Marine Center in Fort Lauderdale in 2015, was awarded nearly $70.6 million in damages after she sued the yacht’s owner following an incident involving the yacht’s deckhand. Rafael…
What Does Florida’s Medical Marijuana Law Mean for Employers?
More than 6.5 million Floridians voted to approve an amendment to the state’s Constitution that allows the right for people with one or more approved Debilitating Medical Conditions to use physician-approved marijuana. Amendment 2, however, does not require any…
Man Wins 3.6 Million After Background Check Goofs
A $3.6 million verdict was won by a Florida man who was falsely identified twice by First Advantage Background Services as a man with the same birthdate, similar name and a violent criminal history. Richard Williams argued that when the company misidentified him as…
Florida House Introduces Social Media Privacy Bill
The Florida House of Representatives has proposed a bill that will prohibit employers from requesting or requiring access to social media account of employee or prospective employee and prohibit employers from taking retaliatory personnel action against employee as…
How a Fort Myers Mental Hospital Missed Warning Signs About Employee Who Sexually Assaulted Patients
Benjamin Bland’s supervisors missed several red flags when they hired him to care for patients at Park Royal Hospital, a last stop for many of Southwest Florida’s seriously mentally ill citizens. Bland was accused of sexually abusing several female…
Fort Myers FL to Ban the Box on City Job Applications
The City of Fort Myers, Florida plans to “Ban the Box” and remove a question on the city’s employment application that asks job seekers applying for city government jobs if they have ever been convicted of a crime. The Myers Human Resources…
Florida Law Firm Files Three Class Action Lawsuits against Employers Alleging Violation of FCRA with Background Checks
A Florida law firm filed federal class action lawsuits in the same court against three separate national employers on the same day, with two of them naming the same consumer as the lead plaintiff, alleging violations of the FCRA by failure to obtain a valid background…
After Purchasing Manager’s Arrest, North Miami Performing Background Checks of Recent Hires
North Miami plans to look more closely at new hires after the recent suspension of an employee following his arrest. Acting Mayor Philippe Bien-Aime has recommended that the city manager conduct full background checks on all employees hired in the past two years. The…